The present disclosure relates to a gas turbine engine, and more particularly to a rotor system therefor.
Gas turbine rotor systems include successive rows of blades, which extend from respective rotor disks that are arranged in an axially stacked configuration. The rotor stack may be assembled through a multitude of systems such as fasteners, fusion, tie-shafts and combinations thereof.
Gas turbine rotor systems operate in an environment in which significant pressure and temperature differentials exist across component boundaries which primarily separate a core gas flow path and a secondary cooling flow path. For high-pressure, high-temperature applications, the components experience thermo-mechanical fatigue (TMF) across these boundaries. Although resistant to the effects of TMF, the components may be of a heavier-than-optimal weight for desired performance requirements.
Further, secondary flow systems are typically designed to provide cooling to turbine components, bearing compartments, and other high-temperature subsystems. These flow networks are subject to losses due to the length of flow passages, number of restrictions, and scarcity of airflow sources, which can reduce engine operating efficiency.